Folk Tales in the Turkmen Village of Karanaz

Oral literary products such as folk tales, fairy tales, and epics are among the prominent cultural expressions produced in response to the material and spiritual needs of societies. These narratives reflect elements of daily life and are transmitted orally from generation to generation, thereby ensuring cultural continuity. The Iraqi Turkmen, who constitute a significant component of Iraqi society, possess a rich folkloric tradition in which folk tales and stories occupy a prominent place. These oral narratives serve as carriers of cultural memory, encompassing the customs, traditions, and socio-cultural elements of Turkmen society in Iraq.The oral cultural productions of Iraqi Turkmen show structural and thematic parallels with those found throughout the Turkic world. Although these narratives exhibit characteristics of storytelling, their epic nature is more dominant. As such, the tradition of storytelling has not been limited to Anatolia but has exerted significant influence across Central Asian cultures. According to existing research, the oldest examples of Turkmen folk tales and stories in Iraq have been transmitted through earlier epic traditions. These stories focus on the Turkmen people's heroism, battles, and socio-cultural life.This study aims to examine the narrative tradition of Iraqi Turkmen folk stories, with particular emphasis on the typology and role of storytellers, in an attempt to understand the mechanisms of oral transmission and its function in shaping Turkmen cultural identity.